Hon. Abdulmumin Jibrin is the former Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Appropriation. The lawmaker, who represents Bebeji/Kiru Federal Constituency in Kano State, is generally viewed in the House as a daring fighter who would stop at nothing to pursue what he believes is right. In his first interview since he returned from the 180-day suspension that was slammed on him after he accused principal officers of the House of shortchanging the nation financially, he spoke with VICTOR OLUWASEGUN on his experiences, hopes and anti-corruption stance.
You are known as one of the few vocal members of the House of Representatives. What exactly drives your passion?
First, I just want to say that I am completely different. There are a lot of vocal members in the House, but maybe my style is different from theirs. Again, I am very passionate about the country and about service. I left my business to come into politics, and what brought me into politics is to make a difference not to make money. I got into the system of the National Assembly at a very young age. I was saddled with a very huge responsibility of chairing the Finance Committee for four years and then I was appointed the chair of the Appropriation Committee. I have seen much within that period, especially the core working of the National Assembly. I understand the powers of the legislature and I am determined that those powers that the constitution gave the legislature should be used for the good of our country. That is what keeps pushing me to make a difference. And when I look back at how far one has come, it has gotten to a point in life that only a few things can put you into fear. I don’t fear anything. I always like to follow my convictions.
You’re back before the Ethics and Privileges Committee of the House. Do you think the new charges against you are justifiable?
Absolutely not. And of course, this is what I have been fighting in the last two years since I was suspended. I was suspended for 180 days. Of course I love to say illegally suspended. The court has declared it, so one can freely say that the suspension was absolutely illegal. And I came back to the House and many people thought that having spent 231 days on suspension, I’ll be subdued. I’ve had people say, ‘Oh yes, he has learnt his lesson!’ I just smile over it. Because what I went through in the last two years did not subdue me but strengthened me. It actually showed that I had the strength I didn’t know that I had, because it is not easy to survive 231 days in suspension, with a very vindictive people or persons, few in number, who want to get you down by every means. But I got over and out of it and came back into the House.
When I came back to the House, I discovered that there were lots of things that were being done before that are still going on. In due course, I will give the details of those issues. For now, I will leave it at that.
Still on the Ethics and Privileges issue…
I don’t even want to give anyone the satisfaction of responding to that. I want to draw the line. I want to watch and see what happens. But the reality is that now, only a member who does not know his rights will be suspended. Not only me, but the rest of the legislators in Nigeria. The judge in my case did not only make a specific declaration but a general one. Even in the case of Senator Omo-Agege, it is the same. The judge said: ‘You do not have the power to suspend this person or even any member, except for a particular number of days which is specified in the privileges…’
You are the arrowhead of Parliamentary Support Group (PSG), and some people are saying you are only using it to advance your political fortunes. What is your reaction?
If in the course of doing the right thing good things come to you, it is fine. I have seen people who work in public service with commitment. They are not corrupt. Men of integrity served this country for years and left with nothing. And somewhere along the line, if a Good Samaritan sees them when they are out of government, he can say, ‘You were a good man in government; I’m going to give you a house’ or ‘I am going to help you make money to take care of yourself.’ And he does that. It is your good work that has come back to you. So if in the course of doing what is right, following my conscience, pursuing the cause of the Parliamentary Support Group, certain good coincidentally comes my way, I will not chase it away. I will accept it.
But the point is that I am not the arrowhead of the Parliamentary Support Group of the House and the Senate. I am just one of the arrowheads. If you will recall, the Parliamentary Support Group was existent in the Senate. We do not have it in the House for reasons best known to one or two persons who should have taken the initiative. The whole idea of the support group is to provide a support base for Mr. President in the House. Of course, there are a bit of issues in the APC caucus. So the President needs to have a special group to provide a support base for him, because he (President) has been very vulnerable in the National Assembly and has been under all kinds of attack. Right now, we are taking signatures because we want to prove to people that the President does have support. In the last few days, you will be shocked at the number of members that have appended their signatures. The idea of the Parliamentary Support Group is not to fight Dogara or Saraki, or to antagonise them. It is only to protect and provide a support base for the President in the parliament.
You levelled serious corruption allegations against the leadership of the House. Are you surprised nothing is being done about it?
Everything I did and said about the issue of corruption in the leadership of the House is in the public domain. I don’t think there is anything left for me to say.
Former Minister for Finance Okonjo-Iweala alleged in her new book that lawmakers took N17 billion to pass the 2015 budget. You were the chairman of Appropriation then. What do you have to say?
I was the chairman of Finance then, and I will just recap my response. My position about that issue is very simple and clear. I do not know anything about N17 billion bribe. I was not a part of it or the meeting. I would have loved it if the former minister of finance had named those who attended the meeting. She only gave the statutory list of those who normally attend the ad hoc committee meeting. The members do not attend all the meetings. I was not there for the meeting as well. I did not benefit from the N17 billion. I have also invited the EFCC to investigate me to find out if I was involved in such gratification if indeed it existed.
2018 budget was increased by over N500 billion. Would you say it was another case of padding or corruption?
In every arm of government, there is an element of bribery and corruption. In the executive, you will see them fighting corruption. You will see people being arraigned. You will see the head of an MDA being arrested or an executive director in a parastatal being accused or arraigned. The judiciary has taken a drastic measure now of internal cleansing. The judiciary is indicting judges. The judicial council is taking unprecedented steps, sacking judges and the rest.
When you come to the legislature, what are the measures that the Senate President and the House Speaker are employing to check internal corruption? Secondly, how have they performed in terms of blocking the loopholes? Are they saying there is no corruption in the parliament? If there is, what have they done? The least that could even be done is to protect internal whistleblowers. Majority of the House members are onlookers. Most of the members are not culpable. They have devised a means to form a budget cabal with some people in the executive arm.
Recently, you issued a statement on behalf of the PSG that they are collecting signatures to support Buhari. There are serious allegations that the Presidency paid hundreds of millions. What do you have to say?
President Buhari does not give anybody money, so anyone who is talking about money is just looking for an excuse. Some people are just upset that a group has emerged to support the President within the National Assembly. So there is no issue of money or inducement.
What would you say you gained during your suspension?
If you recall what I was saying during the 2016 crisis, I said I’ve gotten to a point in my life where what matters is a good name; a legacy. I’ve always loved the idea that long after my time, when my child is walking down the street, people will point and say, ‘Your father was a good man, a patriotic Nigerian who fought for the people of this country selflessly, even at the risk of his own life.’ I want to be remembered as someone who came to serve and give, not to take. I spent three months meeting my people one on one. I gained the privilege to be a member of the National Assembly while looking in from the outside. I didn’t know how people perceived us until I experienced that. So I have a burning desire to change lives. To have a good name is worth more than anything else in this world. Once I realised that during my suspension, it coaxed me to stick to that line of thought and continue to do the right thing.